Mona Johnson-Cheslak, Duluth neighborhood leader, dies at 70

Mona Johnson-Cheslak could move mountains without making a lot of noise.

She was a longtime community leader in Duluth's East Hillside neighborhood, but she stayed out of the spotlight. She fought fiercely when she needed to, but remained respectful. She fostered young leaders and built bridges.

"She would never call up the city and complain with a laundry list of things," said her son, Scott Toomes. "It was always: 'Can we work something out? Is there a way we can accomplish this together?'"

Her daughter agreed: "She was the fixer, she was the one you went to if you needed anything," Jessica Johnson said. "She made you family immediately."

Cheslak died Aug. 22 after a long illness. She was 70.

Cheslak was a model of the saying "think global, act local." Her advocacy included founding the Duluth Community School Collaborative and East Hillside Patch, helping establish the Grant Park Recreation Center, working to keep the neighborhood's elementary school open, leading the East Hillside Community Club and running HillFest for many years.

She told the Duluth Budgeteer in 2007 the stretch of steep streets and century-old homes overlooking Lake Superior was her "neighborhood of choice."

Friends remembered her as a "thoughtful and determined" champion of her neighborhood and the city.

"It was that subtle determination that isn't like breaking everything while you're trying to do something," said James Gittemeier, who worked with Cheslak on HillFest. "Her presence really allowed people to feel welcome, invited and part of the process."

Shannon Laing called her "a quiet powerhouse."

"She was a change-maker, and someone who didn't draw attention to her part in things," Laing said. "She did so much for the community but was never, 'Hey look what I did.' She went about the work to get it done."

Cheslak was born Feb. 20, 1952, in Duluth to Harvey and Dorothy Johnson.

"'Do the right thing, even if it's hard' — that was one of her mottos," Toomes said.

After retiring from a 30-year career as a secretary and treasurer at Cooper Enterprises, she worked for a decade as a bookkeeper at Temple Israel. As with the other spaces she traveled through, she became highly regarded at the synagogue.

Her husband of 37 years, Bill Cheslak, said she was well-liked and will be deeply missed. She was an advocate for those closest to her as well.

"I definitely wouldn't be the man I am today without grandma and grandpa taking me in for a little over half my life," her grandson, Kemon Johnson, said. "She was a great woman. All she wanted was world peace."